Chapter 103: Still Say You Didn’t Steal It
Jane Lancaster sighed internally. ’What is all this? They’re acting like I’m some kind of monster.’
"So, let me ask, have you removed me from the project?" After a moment’s thought, she decided to get a clear answer.
Mia Lanley could hardly believe it. "What are you talking about?"
Jane Lancaster offered a sincere suggestion, "Make sure you remove me. Otherwise, I’ll have to keep coming over here every day, and that’s a real waste of time."
Mia Lanley was about to lose her mind. "Jane Lancaster!"
The handful of people most eager to curry favor immediately rushed forward, simultaneously berating Jane Lancaster and demanding she apologize while consoling Mia Lanley.
"Ms. Langley, please calm down. She’s brainless. It’s not worth getting upset over someone like her."
"Yesterday, everyone was busy helping restore the other ancient paintings, but she was the only one who took off and didn’t help at all."
"Exactly! Shamelessly benefiting from everyone else’s hard work, and she acts like she’s the one in the right?"
"Ms. Langley, people like her must be severely punished! We can’t let one bad apple spoil the whole bunch!"
Jane Lancaster was a bit surprised. ’So, they were actually assigned work after I left?’
’I guess that makes sense. Even if you’re just here to pad your resume, doing nothing all day is a bit too brazen.’
’You have to put on a show, take a few pictures to prove you actually participated in the project.’
Jane Lancaster had no interest in what they were doing, but she felt the need to correct them. "You guys are the real pot of mouse droppings."
Everyone’s faces turned sickly pale. It was an unspoken understanding why they were all here, but how could she just say it out loud?
’That’s going too far! Didn’t you pay to be here and pad your resume, too? What makes you any different from us?’
"Even so, we’re still better than you! At least we actually did some work!"
"That’s right! You stormed off, refused to work, and spent the whole day fooling around. What right do you have to criticize anyone?"
"Since she’s asking to be removed, then let’s just give her what she wants."
"The project team doesn’t have to put up with an idiot like her. We can all testify that she asked to be removed of her own accord."
"That’s right, kick her out!"
Mia Lanley’s face was grim. The truth was, she couldn’t actually remove Jane Lancaster from the project.
The entire ancient painting restoration effort depended on Luna Morgan; even Quentin Woods could only act as her assistant. And since Luna was stubbornly insistent on protecting Jane Lancaster, what could they possibly do to her?
"Aren’t you only acting so brazen because you have Miss Morgan backing you up?"
Jane Lancaster wasn’t surprised in the slightest. "Oh, is Miss Morgan involved in this project too?"
Mia Lanley retorted, "Miss Morgan gave up her bonus and byline credit just to keep you on the team. How dare you still cause trouble?"
Although Luna Morgan had asked everyone to keep it a secret, Mia couldn’t stand the sight of Jane looking so smugly unapologetic.
"If you’re going to freeload off someone else’s achievements, you could at least show some humility. Acting so high and mighty—did you really think we’d just put up with you?"
Jane Lancaster replied, "I already told you, you don’t have to put up with me. Just kick me off the project. Now, I’m busy. I don’t have time to stand around here talking nonsense with you. See you."
With that, she turned and walked out.
Mia Lanley was speechless with rage. ’Who’s wasting whose time here?’
She chased after her, ready to tell Jane that if she was going to leave, she should get the hell out and not come back. But when she reached the corridor leading to the main hall, Jane was nowhere in sight.
Mia Lanley thought for a moment, then turned and told Samuel Miller what had happened.
"All right, I’ve got it," Samuel Miller said with a small smile. "You don’t need to worry about this anymore. I’ll teach her a lesson."
’What a coincidence,’ he thought. He’d seen that old woman yesterday and had a feeling she looked familiar. Then, last night, as he was lying in bed, it suddenly clicked.
’She seemed to be doing well for herself. A dozen years had passed, yet she hadn’t grown old and withered. In fact, she had a gentler, more refined air about her now, not like the bumpkin she used to be.’
’But what did it matter? A person’s background determined their station in life. Crushing her would still be as easy as swatting a fly.’
——
Mama Knight followed a few other housekeepers into a break room.
The break room was equipped with a sofa and a water dispenser, much more comfortable than the benches outside.
The young woman who led them in had a very warm smile. She said they could wait here in the air conditioning from now on, as it was too hot in the main hall.
With time on her hands, Mama Knight took out the tools from her bag and started stringing a bracelet.
She had recently gotten into crystals and had even started studying Chinese astrology, determined to make some crystal bracelets to bring her young lady good fortune.
When Jane Lancaster found out, she even bought some small gold beads for her to use.
But gold was valuable. Since the bracelets she was making now were just for relatives and friends, Mama Knight couldn’t bring herself to use the gold beads, keeping them safely tucked away.
Mama Knight spent the day stringing her bracelets and watching a show on her phone, and the time flew by.
It wasn’t until the door was forcefully pushed open with a BANG that she looked up.
"You lot, come out here," a security guard said in a serious tone. Mama Knight had a bad feeling. She quickly packed away her bracelet-making supplies and walked out.
"What is it? What happened?" the others asked one after another.
"Something’s missing." The security guard looked grim. "Supervisor Miller’s watch, worth millions, has been stolen."
A woman who looked like a nanny stood beside him, her eyes swollen from crying. "My young master accidentally brought his watch today. He can’t wear it at work, so he had me come get it. But I just went to the bathroom for a minute, and the watch was gone!"
For some reason, Mama Knight’s heart sank. This all felt terribly familiar.
She stood silently at the very edge of the crowd, trying to make herself as inconspicuous as possible, not daring to move closer.
The guard looked at the crowd. "There are security cameras at the main entrance. No one has entered or left during the time the watch went missing. So the thief has to be one of you!"
The crowd erupted in an uproar.
Some frantically tried to proclaim their innocence, others demanded to be searched as proof, and some shouted to call the police. The scene descended into chaos.
Mama Knight thought back carefully. The benches in the main hall were near the entrance and would be covered by the cameras, but the break room... it didn’t seem to have any cameras...
The color drained from her face. She quietly turned back toward the break room, intending to grab her bag and check it.
"Why are you sneaking back in? Trying to get rid of the watch?" the guard’s accusatory voice sounded from behind her.
Mama Knight’s heart sank. She slowly turned to face the guard.
"I’ve been sitting right here stringing my bracelet the whole time. Don’t make baseless accusations."
The other nanny suddenly rushed forward, yanked Mama Knight’s bag open, and CLATTER, something fell out.
All eyes fell on the watch on the floor.
"Oh, thank goodness, you found it! This is my young master’s watch!" the other nanny exclaimed, picking it up with feigned ecstasy.
The guard demanded, "And you said you didn’t steal it. How do you explain this?"
The crowd’s disdainful gazes focused on Mama Knight as they began to whisper among themselves.
"My god, I thought she was an honest woman. I can’t believe she’d do something like this."
"So greedy, and so stupid. Daring to steal a watch that valuable."
"I knew it. I could tell from her face she was no good. She has such a mean, shifty look about her. It’s no surprise she’d do something like this."
...
The contemptuous stares and the noisy, disparaging voices washed over Mama Knight. For a moment, her mind went completely blank.
It was as if the nightmare from all those years ago was replaying, dragging her down, bit by bit, into a bottomless mire.
"You’re all talking nonsense! I didn’t steal anything!" Mama Knight screamed herself hoarse. "If I did, may I drop dead right here!"
Her frenzied demeanor startled everyone, and they all instinctively took a few steps back.